Player Quotes - 11/21

(On playing the top ranked defense in the NFL this week and if he has something to prove)- “Yeah, especially playing against the number one defense, especially in this town playing against Pittsburgh. It is big. Watching film, they are the most put together defense I’ve ever seen in the league so far. Those guys there, they’re well disciplined and they love to stop the run. They’re going to put the big hit on you so for me I’ve got to do everything I can to get what they give me.”

(On getting stopped in Dallas and if he feels that he is the guy who needs to finish off drives)- “Yeah, that’s what they picked me for. That’s why they moved up and jumped up a spot. Like I said, I do feel like it’s on me, but I can’t get down on myself and go through the whole week and have a bad game this Sunday. No, that game is over with. I beat up on myself after the game, said what I should have did and watched the film on the plane, ‘I could have done this and I know I could have made better decisions’, but I’m not going to go the whole week like that because life to me is much more than football. I’ve got a family at home. I’ve got teammates around me that don’t want me down. I’m a leader on this team as far as my voice and as far as leading by example so I can’t be down and having my teammates looking at me like, ‘Wow, this is what a first round draft pick is supposed to be doing?’ No, it’s not. That’s not it.”

(On how tough the Steelers defensive scheme is)- “The best thing about this defense is they have good players. They’ve got guys that have been in the league for a long time. They’ve got guys that can tackle. They’ve got guys that are scheme-wise really, really good. He’s (Dick LeBeau) a big zone blitz guy. They don’t give up many big plays. They try to keep everything in front and they do a great job with it. They’ve done it for a long time and I don’t really expect it to change when we play them.”

(On what makes the Steelers so good against the pass)- “Again, they just keep everything in front. They don’t let many guys run by them. Their corners can run. Ryan Clark is playing at a really high level right now. With (Troy) Polamalu out, he’s taken over the back end. He’s doing a great job. They keep everything in front. Like I said, they tackle low. They don’t miss tackles. If they catch the ball in space, they don’t have to worry about the second guy making the play. The corners tackle well. So far that’s what I’ve seen more than anything. They just do a great job of keeping all the guys in front.”

(On facing the Steelers for the first time and what he knows about the rivalry)- “I’m excited about it. Obviously, this is the National Football League, and there are a lot of rivalries throughout the league and this is one of them. The first thing I heard from fans when I got in town is, if you beat the Steelers you don’t buy a steak for a long time. I’m going to hold some of those people true to it (joking). Obviously, it’s not only a divisional game, but they’re close to Cleveland. It’s a rivalry game. I probably honestly won’t know until after the game what it’s really, really about. It’s probably the biggest game on our schedule. Everybody has it circled. We’ve grown up following these match ups and I’m looking forward to playing in it for the first time.”